


Life in Pandemic Times

by Rioghna



Series: Sometime the Dragon... [2]
Category: Witchblade (TV)
Genre: Background Kenneth Irons/OFC, F/M, Gen, Quarantine, pandemic response, written for Yarvarni’s Yarns group
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:41:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23578600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rioghna/pseuds/Rioghna
Summary: Written as a challenge set in the Sometimes the Dragon Wins      -verse ten years on.  Not necessary to read the earlier story but it helps
Relationships: Ian Nottingham/Sara Pezzini
Series: Sometime the Dragon... [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1697251
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	Life in Pandemic Times

Life in Pandemic Times

“Hey Sarge,” the blue clad officer greeted Sara as she entered the precinct.

“Told you not to call me that, Smitty,” she fired back, but there was no heat in it. A little normal banter was in as short supply as toilet paper these days, when normal wasn’t.

“Got those new deployments, fresh from One PP for you,” he said, handing her the file folder with a tired smile. They were all tired. With the virus running through the city and 10% of the force infected, on home quarantine or worse, in hospital, they were understaffed and working extra duty. When this is over she decided, it’s time to take that vacation we’ve been planning. Okay, Ian has been planning.. Sara loved her job, but she really wished she was on a beach somewhere, or at least she would if the city wasn’t in such dire straits. At least she and Ian didn’t have to worry about jobs, or making the rent. 

She scanned the sheet as she made her way into the squad room, mentally trying to dole out assignments. “Hey, Pez.” She looked up, startled at the familiar voice.

“Jake, what the...” she resisted the urge to hug her former partner. After his assignment had finished, he’d gone back to Washington, though they still saw each other when he came up.

“Came up with a witness on a case we’re prosecuting in conjunction with New York, but the assignment’s over and they didn’t want to start me on something new, told me to stay. I got special permission to lend a hand, seeing as how you are short. How’s the family?” he asked, looking around to see if anyone was paying attention. Fortunately everyone was too busy.

“Jamie’s at his grandparents,” she said. Of all the people in the station, while most knew she was married with a son, and some had even met them, only Jake had been there at the beginning. He was also the only one who knew that her husband was the only son of super secretive billionaire Kenneth Irons. 

“That’s about as safe as it can be,” he said, knowingly. “Give them my best, then tell me where I can help out. Apparently the chief thought you would know what to do with me.” Sara smiled. Jake was still the same blonde, blue eyed surfer boy, just a little more grown up, maybe. 

“You asked for it,” she said. “And Jake, good to see you.”

He just nodded and followed her. Sara gave the briefing in the largest of the rooms, one small group at a time to maintain the expected distance. She was in charge and hating every minute of it, but their Captain, a grizzled veteran who had come in after Joe Siri retired, had tested positive two days ago, leaving her holding the bag. She took her own team last. “Okay people, it’s going to be another long one, so let’s go.”

“Who’s the new guy?” Martinez asked. 

“This is Jake, he used to be my partner, right now he’s on loan. Good?” There were nods all around. “Okay then. I need two of you to volunteer for hospital duty. Uptown needs help at the field hospital in Central Park, volunteers?”

“I’ll do it,” Connolly said.

“I’ll go too,” Tariq agreed. Sara thought for a moment, before nodding her approval. They both had medical experience, and more important, both lived by themselves. 

“Be careful, and don’t bait the fundies,” she cautioned. The hospital was being staffed by a religious charity that was both anti LGBTQ+ and Islamaphobic, and she just hoped everyone kept their heads. “Make sure you’ve got your gear too, that goes for everyone. Masks and gloves, you know the procedure.” They were using the masks usually issued to traffic and other officers who had to be out in severe weather, but it was what they had on offer. Pretty soon, if the weather turned, they were going to be too hot, but that was another worry for another day. 

“Okay, foot patrols,” she continued, handing them out until she finished with the assignments. She herself had two active cases that had been on her desk when the Captain called, and now this, and she had to send two of her Asian American officers to go talk to a couple people in Chinatown. Despite the diversity of the city, there were still a few yahoos who thought the virus was a good excuse to blame someone, and so hate crimes were up down there. 

“What about me, Pez?” Jake asked. 

“Oh, I saved the best for you and me. Did you bring your own mask and gloves?”

“Hey Nottingham,” Sara said as she answered the hands free. The two of them were heading downtown, their fourth or fifth trip, and the strangely empty streets and sidewalks were making Jake a little antsy. They had spent the day helping out with getting protective equipment delivered, though they had stopped to answer one call, as they were passing near the precinct, a local bodega reporting a disturbance. Sara pulled up and hit the brakes, jumping out, only to find an angry man yelling at the quiet Sikh who owned the place, an elderly woman with a cane standing on the other side. Around them, people standing in line waiting to go into the store, spaced more or less equally. At least someone was maintaining social distance.

“What’s the trouble?” Sara asked. 

“This gentleman...” the owner began.

“That old bat...” the angry man started.

“One person, Ikbir?” 

“This gentleman, he...” 

“That young man shoved me out of the way, reaching for the last pack of toilet paper,” the elderly woman interrupted calmly. “So I whacked him good with my cane.” Sara wanted to laugh. 

“I asked him to leave,” Ikbir said. “You know, detective, that I do not like disturbance in my store.”

“Hey, she’s the one that...” Sara gave him the patented Pezzini death glare. 

“If you want to file a complaint, I will have to take you in,” she said, hoping reason would be seen. She didn’t have time for this shit. She only stopped because Ikbir had been a good friend to the station and the neighbourhood. 

“I just want my TP,” the angry man said.

“Just take them in, Pez. If that bottom feeder from the Compost is still sneaking into the station, it will make the front page tomorrow,” Jake extemporised. “‘Man assaults old woman over Charmin.’ I’m sure they will find a way to make a bad pun out of it though.”

“Charmin Wars?” Sara suggested. She could see where Jake was going. “Okay, let’s go...”

“I...ummmm, no, I don’t...” the angry man was suddenly looking like he wanted to be somewhere else, anywhere. 

“Well, come on then, I don’t have time for this,” she said, waving him towards the car. 

“Forget it. But I’m never coming back to this store again,” he said, hurrying away as if he was afraid there was a reporter around the corner.

“You will not,” Ikrim agreed. “Thank you.” Behind them, several people waiting jeered at the retreating figure. 

“Yeah, just watch out for the stupid, okay, next time I might not be around the corner,” she said, waving Jake back into the car with a small smile on her face.

“Well, that was fun,” Jake said.

“Yeah, I owe you one for that, nice save, Rookie,” she said. 

“What can I say, I learned from the best,” Jake told her. “What an asshole.” 

“Got to have one in every crowd. I’m just glad we haven’t had more, but people have been pretty calm so far. I just don’t know how long we can keep this up.” 

“Good thing I’m here, then.”

**Author's Note:**

> The story is set in current NYC, in the midst of this situation. The field hospital in Central Park is there and run by a fundamentalist group that requires volunteers to sign a statement of faith to work with them, and the NYPD has a high infection rate which is making them short handed. That being said, we have to get our amusement some where and I will try to keep the story light. I am a big fan of happy endings. Thanks to Birdy, and I hope you enjoy this. Updates will depend on my (currently) flakey Internet. Comments are love, please spread the love.


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